A misbehaving goddess must tear herself away from her passion for shopping to appease Zeus by serving as a fairy godmother in this amusing sequel to 2008’s Venus Envy
. In the Oregon town of Bender, Venus finds new godchild Haydee Miller, owner of the appropriately named Mount Olympus Books. Haydee’s true love turns out to be her loathed ex-boyfriend Derek Reed, a globe-trotting photographer back in town 10 years after abandoning her, but she’s snared a mild-mannered veterinarian in the meantime and is dead set on tying the knot by her next birthday. Meanwhile, men keep falling for the exasperated love goddess. McKelden writes in breezy chick lit style, and while Venus is far more interesting than bland Haydee and her chemistryless interactions with Derek, that will just encourage readers to stick around for future volumes. (Jan.)
